Brick-machine



2 Sheets- Sheet 1.

(N o Model.) J REAGER BEIGK MAGHINE.

Patented Sept. 11,' 1883..

FIG.6.

(No Modei.

&CREAGERL BRIGK MAGHINE.

Patanted Sept. 11, 1883.

No. Z84,949.

FIG.`9.

Fza.

FIG- 10.

FIG.13.

J ONATHAN CREAGER, OF CINOINNATI, OHIO.

BRlCK-MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION formig part of Letters Patent No. 284949, dated September11, 1883.

Application filed Apri112, 1883 cinnati, in the county of Hamilton andState of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improveinents inBricl -Machines, of which the following is a specification, referencebeing had thei-ein to the accompanyng drawings'.

The first part of 'my invention relates to those brick-machines whichare provided with levers, rock-shafts, and connecting-rods for advancingand retracting the horizontally-recip rocating followcrs that force thefilled molds out at the lower part of the png-mill; and the improvementconsists in journaling the main lever of such machinesin a fulcrumbearing or box capable of shifting automatically the instant thefollower or mold is arrested either with a stone or other obstruction,thereby rendering said main lever inoperative for the time being. Thisautomatically-shiftablefulcrumbearing is maintained in its normalposition with' a trip-lever provided with a weight or poise, which canbe adjusted to prevent any sliding of said hearing until a certainpredeternined resistance has been overcome.

The second part of my invention consists of a novel combination ofdevices wherewith the shiftable fulcrun-bearng is held in check by theheel of the trip-lever, and yet is capable of disengaging itselftherefrom when' occasion may requi'e. l

The third part of my invention consists in providing the machine with aself-acting 'catch that retains the trip-lever in the elevated positionit assumes in the act of liberating the fulcrum-bearing and allowing itto slide.

The fourth part of my invention consists in combinin g a counter-leverand suitable connections with the trip-lever, in order that the lattermay be operated by the attendant'who feeds the empty molds into themachine, thereby enabling said attendant to arrest the action of themain lever at any time.

The fifth part of my invention comprises a novel bumping or jarringapparatus, said device being an improvement on the construction seen inthe patent granted to me May 9, 1882.

The siXth part of my invention consists in a novel applianceforlubricating the step of the pug-nill shaft.

(No model.)

The seventh part of my invention consists in furnishing the followerwith peculiarly-constructed journal -bearings that confinesaid followerto the track upon which it runs.

In the anneXed drawings, Figure l is a side elevation of my improvedbrick-machine, the main lever being shifted so as to advance thefollower. Fig. 2 is an elevation of the lower portion of the oppositeside of the machine. Fig. 3 is an elevation of that end of the frame towhich the bumper or jar-ring apparatus is applied. Fig. 4 shows thecounter-lever and its connections. Fg. 5 is an enlarged elevation of oneof the bumper-blocks. Fig. 6 is an aXial section of the step of thepug-mill shaft and its accessories. Fig. 7 is a sectionized plan of thedrum around which is coiled the chain that connectssaid drum withtheshiftable fulcrumhearing. Fig. 8 is a vertical section, showing theself-actin g catch engaged under the elevated trip-lever. Fig. 9 is anenlarged'sectional elevation of the shiftable fulcrum-bearing and itsimmediate accessories. Fig. 10 is ahorizontal section of said bearing,taken in the plane of A represents the framework, and a the puge mill,of an ordinary brick-machine, said frane having at top a driving-shaftprovided 'with a pinion indicated by the dotted lines a', which piniongears with the master-wheel B of counter-shaft b. This shaftbcommunicatesmotion by suitable bevel-gearing to the pug-mill shaft X.(Seen in Fig. 6.) NVheel B has a studshaft, b', up on which lattcr is journaled a roller, B', adapte'd to operate against the upper end of amain lever, O, said lever being pivoted at c to a fulcrum bearing orbox, D. As shown in Fig. 11, the base of this box flares outwardly, butis capable of sliding freely in the longitudinal slot of a guide, E, thelatterbeing x securely bolted to one of the side timbers, a", of theframe. Furthermore, one end of this IOO it three nuts, G G G". (Seen inFig. 10.) The nuts G G' secure rod F to the box D, and the nut G" servesas an adjustable stop that limits the travel of said box or hearingtoward the head e. Swivel g has attached to it one end of a chain, H,whose other end is fa'stened to a lug, i, of drum I, which latter isjournaled on a stud-shaft, j, projectng laterally'from a plate, J,bolted to the frame A, the details of said drum, &c., being more clearlyseen in Fig. 7. Furthermore, plate J has a hook-,j', adapted to bearagainst a collar, K, cast on the inner end of drum I, said collar beingcut away at k to clear the hook 7' when the drum is first slipped ontothe shaft j. The drum beingtthen slightly turned, the hook prevents itaccidentally working off of said shaft. Projecting from the outer end ofthe drum is a spur, i', adapted to bear upon a tai1-piece,L, as moreclearly seen in Fig. 12, a bolt, l, and slot l' enabling said tail-pieeeto be adjusted longitudinally of the shoe M, which latter is pivoted atm to a hanger, m', attached to the beam a". This shoe protects the heelof a triplever, Nhung on pivot m, and provided with an adjustableweight, n. Attached to the long arm of this lever is aconnection, n',communicating with one end of a counter-lever, N',

(seen in Fig. 4,) said lever being pivoted to the frame at N", andhaving a pull or handle, n", convenient to the attendant who feeds theempty molds into the machine. (See Fig. 2.) Trip-lever N is adapted toplay vertically in the slot o of a bracket, O, attached tobeam a", saidbracket being further slotted at '0' to admit a pivoted bell-crank, o",which serves as a self-acting catch to arrest said lever in its elevatedposition, as seen in Fig. 8.

Attached to the lower end of main lever O is a link, d, thattakes holdof an arm, p, of rock-shaft P, the longer arms of which, 1)' 19', havecoupled to them connecting-rods Q Q'. These rods are united to studs uof follower U, one of said studs being seen in Fig. 13. Furthermore,this rock-shaft P is provided with a pair of cranks, R R', weighted,respectively,.at r a", for the purpose of retracting follower U as soonas roller B' escapes from the upper end of main lever C.

Attached to the beams a'", upon which runs the follower U, are hangersa", that afford journal-bearings for two frames, S S', adapted to Swingtransversely of said beams, these frames being furnished at their upperends with blocks s s', so arranged as to strike alternately the oppositeends of the mold indicated with dotted lines in Fig. 3. The lower endsof frames S S' are loaded at s", and are united with a connecting-rod,s'. This rod may be made in two sections, having right and left handthreads to engage with a swive1-nut, in order that the frames S S' maybe adjusted toward or away from each other, as occasion may require. sis the Operating-lever of said swinging frames. J ournaled in the mainframe is a roller, T, that facilitates the insertion of the empty moldsin advance of the follower U. (See Fig. 2.) Secured to the inner side ofsaid follower is acasting,V,that serves as the j ourn al-bearing for theshaft W of roller w, that runs on the track w', attached to beam a'", asseen in Fig. 13. This casting has at top an oil-channel, v, and near thebottom a rib or flange, e', that bears against the under margin of trackw', and thereby prevents cant- Preparatory to Operating the machine theweight n is adjusted along the trip-lever N, according to the nature ofthe clay that is to be converted into bricks. If the clay is verystif,theweight is placed near the extreme end of the lever; but if the.clay is loose and friable, said weight is set much nearer the bracketO. Power being then applied to the machine,

so as to revolve the master-wheel B in the direction of the arrow seenin Fig. 1, the main lever C swings on its pivot c, thereby advancing thefollower U and forcing the charged mold out of the pressbox in the usualmanner. As soon, however, as roller B' escapes from contact with mainlever C, the weights r r' restore said lever and follower to theirnormal positions, so as to allow an empty mold to be inserted in advanceof said follower, the roller T enabling the most convenient applicationof the mold. These Operations are repeated at each and every stroke oflever C,the weightn retaining the trip-lever N in its normal position,and thereby preventing any rotation of drum I. consequently the slidinghearing D remains immovably in its guide E; but the very moment anyunusual strain is imposed on the machine-as, for example, by a stone orother obstruction getting wedged in the moldsuch strain is at oncetransferred to the heel of trip-lever M by means of chaiu H, drum I, andspur i'. This strain then overcomes the resistance of weight n, and le-Ver N is at once tripped so far as to allow 'spur i' to escape fromcontact with the tailpiece L, which act leaves the drum I free torevolve on shaft j and permits fulcrum-bearing D to recede from saiddrum. This automatic shifting of, said bearing at once arrests theaction of lever C and eifectually prevents breakage of any of theoperative parts of the mechanism. As soon as the lever N is, thustripped, the bell-crank catch o swings out from the slot 0', as seen inFig. 8, and looks said lever in this position until said catch isintentionally forced back. The lever then falls and rests on the shorterarm of the bellcrank. Again, in case one of the molds should lodge inthe act of being :fed in over the roller IOO IIO

T, the attendant can instantly pull on handle a", thereby lifting thelever N and tripping off the spur i', so as to Shift the bearing D. Itwill thus be seen that said trip-le- 5 ver is capable of working eitherautomatically v or by hand, as occasion may require, and in either eventit instantly arrests the action of the machine. As rapidly as thecharged molds reach the end of beams cd" they are ro jarred by causingthe blocks s' s to strike against the opposite 'ends of said molds. Thisstriking action is effected by the attendant grasping the handle s andVibrating it from right to left, the weights s causing the blocks s s'to strike the mold with sharp, quick blows, that at once loosen thecompressed clay. The connecting-rod s' draws the lower ends of frames SS' toward each other, thereby keepin'g the weights s" under the frame,where they will not interfere with the operator. As the pipe Z iscarried up to the top of the pugmillit is evident the shaft-steps Y ycan be lubricated at any time and without taking v I the machine apart.In a modification of my invention the t-ip-lever N can be omitted andthe fulcrum-bearing D be held in check either 'with a spring or weight;but the trp-lever is e preferred. Finally, the tail-piece L can be swungup toward hanger m', preparatory to re-engaging the spur i' with thetrip -levcr heel. I claim as my invention- 1. The combination, in abrick-machine, of an automatically-shiftable fulcrum-bearing for themain leVer, and a trip-level' carrying an adj ustable weight, for thepurpose specified'.

2. The combination, in a brick-machine, of an automatically-shiitablefulcrum-bearing for t'e main lever, a trip -lever carrying an adjustableweight, and a self-acting catch that locks said trip-lover in itselevated position, as herein described.

3. The combination, in a brick-machine, of an automatically-shiftablefulcrun-bearing for 45 the main lever, a trip-lever carrying anadjustable weight, a self-acting catch for looking said trip-level', anda counter-lever and connections, wherewith the fceder is enabled tooperate the trip-lover, for the purpose specified.

4. The'combination of pivoted main lever C c, shiftable fulcrum-bearingD, fixed guide E e e', swivel g, screw-threaded rod F f f', nuts G G'G", chain H, drum I i, and spur 71', which latter bears on the heel oftrip-lever N, for the purpose specified.

5. The combination of drum I, spur z", adjustable tail-piece L Z Z',shoe M, and weighted lever N n, said shoe and lever being hung on thecommon pivot m, as described.

G. The bracket O, provided with a slot, 0, traversed by the trip-level:N, and having another slot, o', within which is pivoted the selfactingbell-crank o, for the purpose stated.

7. The plate J, having a stud-shaft, j, and hook j in combination withthe drum I, provided with a lug, i, spur 'i', and interrupted collar Kk, for the object stated.

8. The combination of main lever O, link (Z, rock-shaft P, arms p p'1)', weighted crank 70 R 1-, and connecting-rods Q Q', which latteractuate the follower U, as herein described.

9. The jarring apparatus consisting of the connected swinging frames S'S', provided at their upper ends with bumpers s s', and carrying attheir lower ends weights s, for the object stated.

10.' The combination, in a brick-machine, of pug-mill shaft X x,chambered steps Y y, and pipe Z, which latter is tapped into the lowerblade, z, of said shaft, for the purpose stated.

ll. The journal-hearing V-for follower U, said bearng having a rib, 'U',that slides under the track w', upon which--latter runs the wheel w ofsaid follower, as described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JONATHAN CREAGER.

Witnesses:

JAMES H. LAYMAN, J OHN ROLING.

